The subject matter disclosed herein relates generally to cooling electronic devices and, more particularly, to methods and apparatus for dissipating heat from an integrated circuit device.
In at least some known electronic systems, e.g., computers, radios, radar modules, etc., the electronic device is the warmest component in the system. As such, at least some known electronic devices are coupled to a heat removal system to dissipate heat generated by the electronic device. Many known heat removal systems for such electronic devices include a path for heat flow with a high thermal resistance resulting in a high operating junction temperature. Generally, waste heat is removed by conduction, spreading, and convection to an appropriate cooling fluid with gradual reductions in temperature as the heat moves from the heat source to the cooling fluid. For example, the heat generated by a high-density power integrated circuit (“IC”) device may travel from the front side of the IC device trough the IC substrate, a thermal interface material, a heat spreader, and a heat sink before being transferred to a cooling fluid, e.g., air.
While considerable efforts have been made to develop heat removal systems that are reliable and efficient, these systems often only address the backside cooling of the electrical devices. These systems are unable to limit the temperature rise of today's complex electronic components. Such cooling solutions, where heat must be conducted away from components before rejection to the air, add considerable weight and volume to electronic systems. This results in complex electronic systems that continue to grow in size and weight due to the inefficiencies of the current cooling system designs.